Silence
by Nina Natsu
Summary: Why are you dodging my questions?" -Sasuke "Because there is reason for them to be dodged." -Hinata Team 7 with a different Kunoichi, Hinata-centric, eventual sasuhina. HAITUS until further notice. Sorry!
1. Genin Teams

Here's my attempt at a Naruto story, love triangle! This could take a while... Oh, and Hiashi is going to be a tad bit OOC. Okay, so him and Hinata have an actual father-daughter relationship, they just hide it from public to avoid problems. Bare with me people!

Silence

Chapter 1: Gennin Teams

Hinata was jolted awake when she senced a large amount of chakra headed straight for her. She caught the jyuuken attack with ease and tumbled from her bed gracefully, closing the main tenkitsu on her father's leg with her own chakra-enhanced fingers. Hiashi smiled at his daughter.

"I believe you've improved, Hinata." He said. The heiress let go of his wrist and stood, bowing to her father.

"Only with your help, Tou-san." She answered and Hiashi playfully ruffled her short hair. Hinata loved this side of her father, playful and carefree. Worries of the clan didn't weigh on him when it was only the two of them, or when Hanabi was with them. This was a family thing.

"Today's the day." He said, grinning down at her. Hinata's eyes widened.

"Really? You're gonna let me?!" Hinata asked. Hiashi nodded, earning a squeel of delight from his oldest daughter.

"Get dressed." He said, putting his emotionless mask on again.

"Hai, Hiashi-sama!" She said formally, then winked before he turned and walked out of the room.

An hour later Hinata walked into the academy classroom. All eyes were turned to her as she slipped into a seat at the back. It was hard not to stare at the heiress. The person who they had formally thought of as shy was wearing knee-length black shorts and a fishnet tanktop showed slightly from under her navy jacket. The jacket was decorated in a ying/yang symbol on the back in silver and gold. Her hitai-ite was tied around her neck, finishing the look. There was silence until...

"Out of my way, Ino-pig!" The door flung open to reveal Sakura and Ino (I'm pretty sure you know what they look like), both fighting to be the first ones through the door. Eventually they both fell into the classroom and their eyes landed on Konoha's heart-throb. (Guess who?) Sasuke remained emotionless as ever as his two biggest fangirls shrieked his name, if only flinching a little. Sakura was the first one to try and sit next to him, only to be blocked by Naruto when she opened her mouth.

"Hey Sakura-chan! I hope we end up on the same team! That would be so cool!" The boy cried, grinning and closing his eyes in the process. That didn't turn out to be such a great move, as Sakura punched him out of the way to get to the Uchiha avenger.

"SASUKE-kun?!" The only problem was that he wasn't there. When nobody was paying attention to him he slipped from his seat and was now casually walking towards the back of the room where a certain heiress was sitting. Ironically he stopped next to her table. Without a word Hinata scooted to the middle seat, allowing Sasuke to sit on the end with his hands folded in front of him, serving as a chin rest. He let out a barely audible sigh of relief.

"Thanks." He mumbled. Hinata nodded and smiled slightly, folding her arms on the table in front of her as well, though in a more relaxed position. (Meaning that her arms were flat on the table instead of raised like Sasuke's)

"No problem." She replied. Just then Iruka walked in.

"Everyone please take your seats." He said. Sakura grudgingly sat with an ecstatic Naruto while Ino took a seat in the back by a tired Shikamaru.

"Alright, I have your teams here. They will be the standard three-person cells, two boys and one girl." Several girls squealed at this, thinking about who they hoped to be paired with. Hinata was not among them, as she joined Sasuke in rolling her eyes. This was a serious thing, not something to be worrying about crushs in! (Just so you know, Hinata doesn't have a crush on Naruto in this fic) Sasuke was just rolling his eyes at their stupidity, wanting to get this over with.

After the class quieted down a bit Iruka started listing off teams.

"Team 7; Hyuuga Hinata! Uchiha Sasuke! And Uzumaki Naruto!"

_You're kidding, right? _Sasuke thought. _At least it's Hyuuga and not some fangirl though_. He glanced over at Hinata to try and see her reaction. Said girl was having similair reactions.

_Sasuke-san and Uzumaki, huh? _Hinata glanced at the blond boy, who had just stood up. _Oh boy. _

Naruto stood up, slamming his fists down on the table as he did so.

"Iruka-sensai! Why do I have to get teamed up with the Teme and the shy girl?!" Naruto demanded. Iruka sighed and shook his head. He should have known something like this was going to happen.

"Calm down, Naruto! You're grades were the lowest, and Sasuke's were the highest. You were put on the same team to even it out." Iruka tried to explain. Naruto looked thoughtful for a minute.

"Okay, so I understand the Teme. But why not Sakura-chan instead of the cry baby?!" One delicate eyebrow rose up on Hinata's face. _Cry baby?_

"Yeah! Why can't I be on Sasuke-kun's team?!" Sakura piped in. She didn't necessarily want to be on Naruto's team, but if it meant being with Sasuke then she was all for it. "I'm much better than the Hyuuga girl!" There was silence as Hinata stood slowly, the bench making a slight scraping noise against the ground. Her pale eyes were hidden behind indigo bangs, shadowing her face and giving her a deadly look.

"The Hyuuga girl?" She repeated, raising her head to reveal activated Byakugon eyes, veins pulsing. Sasuke watched in interest from beside her, wondering how she would handle this situation.

"I don't mind that you think I am weak, but you insult my clan when you say it that way." Sakura gulped, feeling the glare bore into her at full force. "Repeat after me, Haruno-san. The Hyuuga's are not to be judged by one person."

"T-the H-hyuuga's are n-n-n-not to be judged by o-one person." Sakura stuttered out while backing up a little more until she was pressed against the desk behind her.

"I will not judge the Hyuuga clan again."

"I-I will n-not judge t-the H-hyuuga clan a-again." Hinata sat back down, Byakugon deactivating.

"Good." Sakura let out a breath she hadn't known she had been holding and slumped into her chair. Sasuke stared at the girl next to him in wonder, shocked at how she had made Sakura look so vulnerable. Naruto looked back and forth between Hinata and Sakura, eyes widening with every pass before he too dropped into his chair. Hinata looked back at a shaken-up Iruka.

"We have no more objections. Please continue." Iruka looked down at the paper before him, clearing his throat in a nervous manner.

"Uh... Team 8; Inuzuka Kiba! Haruno Sakura! And Aburame Shino!" Sakura's face fell. She was stuck with _those_ two?

_**Why does the world love to torture me so?!?!?!**_ her innerself screamed in agony, clutching it's head. "Team 10; Akimichi Chouji! Yamanaka Ino! Nara Shikamaru!" Ino's jaw dropped as she looked at her two team mates in disbelief, but she said nothing, fearing a repeat of Hinata's speach in some form.

Iruka glanced around the room, noting that everyone except the Uchiha and the Hyuuga were still shooken up by the small speach they had witnessed. Not that he blamed them; Hinata's tone could have stopped an assasin in their tracks. Hell, even he was scared!

"You're desmissed for a half hour lunch break. Return to this room after that to meet your new senseis." There was a small noise of scraping benches as the Gennin hurried to obey. Hinata turned to Sasuke.

"Might as well get to know each other. Want to have lunch with me?" She asked, standing up. Sasuke also stood.

"Sure. Do you want to get the Dobe too?" He asked. Hinata grimaced.

"Probably should. We'll have to get used to him somehow, right?" With that said both ninja set off to meet up with Naruto and have lunch.

Lunch went by uneventfully, with Naruto ocasionally throwing glares in Hinata's direction. She noticed, but decided not to touch the subject. They were supposed to be a team, right? Now the new Team 7 had been sitting in the classroom for a good three hours and their sensei still hadn't shown up.

"Where the heck is he?!" Naruto shouted, sticking his head out the door for the umpteenth time. Hinata rolled her eyes.

"Naruto, I suggest you sit down. He'll get here when he gets here, alright? Standing at the door isn't going to do anything. Sit down." Naruto ignored her and grabbed an earaser from the front of the room, jamming it into the doorframe.

"That's a lame trick, you know that, right?" Sasuke said, raising one eyebrow. Naruto just giggled in a very girly way.

"There's an earaser in the doorjam!" Hinata called, as if trying to warn someone. After that she continued reading her scroll. Her reasons were made clear when a hand pushed the door open and the earaser dropped in front of a tall man with a mask covering most of his face. His hitai-ite sloped down to cover one eye as well, giving the impression that he wanted as little of his face visible as possible.

"Thanks for the warning." He said cheerfully, scratching the back of his head while his visible eye curved, telling them he was smiling.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Naruto shrieked, pointing an accusatory finger at the masked Jonnin. The man moved into a more relaxed position, but you could see that he was slightly serious. Hinata put away her scroll and stood from her position on top of the desk. Sasuke also turned his attention to the Jonnin before him.

"Why don't we meet on the roof to talk some things over." He suggested, while his new team nodded.

When they arrived at the new location and sat down, Kakashi closed the orange book he had been reading to look at the Gennin. Hinata twitched slightly at the sight of the book.

_Pervert._

"Okay, so why don't we all introduve ourselves?" The man asked in a bored manner.

"What do you mean, Sensei?" Naruto asked bluntly, tilting his head to one side in confusion.

"I want you to tell me about yourselves. You know, what are your likes and dislikes? Hobbies? Dreams for the future? That kind of thing." He answered.

"Why don't you start, Sensei?" Hinata asked from her seat in front of Sasuke. _You'll have to work harder than that to get me to talk, Sensei. Let's see just how qualified you are. _

"Me? Okay. My name is Hatake Kakashi. There are a lot of things that I like and dislike. As for hobbies and dreams for the future... well I don't feel like telling you that." Kakashi finished. Sasuke's eye twitched slightly. _So all we learn is his name? What good is that?!_ Hinata, however, was smiling at their new instructor with different thoughts running through her head. _So he has some survival skills after all. I'm impressed. _Naruto just looked at him in boredom, most likely ignoring most of the short speach. "You in the orange; your turn." Naruto grinned, sitting up a little taller.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto! Believe it! I like instant ramen in a cup, but I hate the three minutes it takes to be ready. My hobby is trying out different kinds of ramen and comparing them. And my dream is to be the greatest Hokage this village has ever seen! That way everyone will have to respect me!" He finished, his grin growing if that's possible. Kakashi nodded and looked over at Sasuke.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I don't particularly like anything, but I dislike a lot of things. I don't really have a hobby. My dream isn't really a dream, but a goal. I will revive my clan and kill a certain someone." Naruto shivered. _I hope he isn't talking about me..._ Kakashi nodded once again and turned to the female of the group. Hinata smiled.

"My name is Hyuuga Hinata. I like a lot of things, and I won't go in depth with that. The things I dislike are people that abandon comrades for the sake of themselves. My hobbies... You don't really need to know that. My dream for the future is... we'll say... unimportant?" She finished and smiled at Kakashi. Kakashi nodded again, thinking over their answers carefully. _Naruto seems to be a little on the shallow side, and he likes to talk about himself. Sasuke sounds like he has other things on his mind when he talks, so he's obviously on the arrogant side. As for Hinata... _Kakashi's thoughts paused as he caught the kunoichi's eye. She had a knowing look on her face, as if reading into his thoughts. _She's very intelligent. She's already got this exercise figured out, and she's curious as to what I think of her tactics. Very good._

"Okay, so you all have seperate personallities with seperate ideas. That's good. You'll make a good team in the future." Kakashi smiled at them before turning serious. "Now, as for our mission tomorrow--"

"YEAH! Our first real mission! Finally!" Naruto shouted, jumping into the air and pumping a fist even higher. Sasuke rolled his eyes while Hinata sighed.

"Will you let me finish?" Naruto shut up when Kakashi glared at him slightly. What do you expect? Being a Jonnin would give you quite a bit of practice in that particular field. "Now, the mission is more of a test."

"A test?" Hinata asked, alert at once.

"Yes. If you don't pass this test, you will be sent back to the academy to train more." Kakashi answered. Naruto's jaw hit the floor, Hinata's eyes went wide and Sasuke sat up straighter.

"WHAT?! SEND US BACK TO THE ACADEMY?! THAT'S INSANE!" Naruto cried, jumping up to emphasize his distress. _For once I agree with the dobe... _Sasuke thought.

"What is the reason behind the test in the academy then?" He asked. Kakashi moved to answer, but Hinata beat him to it.

"Was it just to select candidates, Sensei?" She asked. Again the adult was impressed, and could only nod while looking at the girl thoughtfully.

"Yes, Hinata, very good. Out of all of the candidates that became gennin in the academy test, 66 will fail, at least. Oh, and I've never passed a team before." He added cheerfully, causing Naruto's eyes to basically pop out of his head.

"NEVER?!" He shrieked, his voice raising an octave.

"That's right, Naruto; never. Now, I want everyone to meet at training ground 13 tomorrow morning at 5:00. Is that clear? Oh, and don't eat breakfast; you'll puke it up. Ja!" With that the jounin disappeared in a puff of smoke, most likely to read his perverted novel.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun." Hinata said, and she too went home, by way of rooftops. _A pass-fail test that determines another year of academy training or not... This'll be interesting_. Hinata thought with a smile. _Bring it on_.

--End Chapter--


	2. The Test

Chapter 2. Standard disclaimers apply.

Silence

Chapter 2

Hinata stood in her bedroom, putting kunai into the pouch on her leg while she thought about the exam that faced them. _Why would the academy even pass people that they knew would have no chance at passing the real thing..._ She shook her head, grabbing her jacket and pulling it on._ The stress level among everyone that graduated is incredible. _Hinata looked out of her window to see that the sun was barely starting to rise; only a dim glow to the east at the moment. A glance at the clock told her that it was 4:00 am. _No harm in being early._

It was closer to 4:30 when she arrived and sat on a rock nearby, prepared to wait patiently for the next half hour. _I wonder what the test will be..._

"Yo, Hinata-san." Came a voice from behind her and she jumped, only to see Sasuke walk in front of her, looking tired but awake none the less.

"Ohayou, Sasuke-kun." She replied absently, still wondering how he could have snuck up on her so easily. The Uchiha sat next to her on the rock and sighed.

"Do you think either of them will be on time?" The boy asked, leaning back onto one hand. Hinata smiled, taking out a kunai and beginning to sharpen it.

"Not a chance. Naruto-kun will be at least 10 minutes late, and Kakashi-sensei will probably reach the hour mark." She answered, amusement written across her face. Sasuke looked at the sun.

"Then that means we have about... 20 or so minutes before someone else shows up." Sasuke slid off the rock to the ground right before it and leaned back. "Wake me up before the Dobe gets here."

"Alright." Hinata continued to sharpen her kunai set, then moved on to shuriken. It was 5:15 now, and she had run out of weapons. Having nothing else better to do, she activated her Byakugon and checked to see if Naruto was on his way or not. _Let's see... Naruto-kun lives in that direction... Found him... _Naruto was running out of his apartment complex with a peace of toast in his mouth and his Hitai-ite crooked. The Hyuuga laughed at the sight, waking her teammate on accident.

Sasuke noticed that her Bloodline was activated and quickly put two and two together.

"Dobe do something entertaining?" He asked groggily, standing up and stretching. Hinata nodded, bloodline deactivating.

"He's just left his apartment with breakfast hanging out of his mouth and his Hitai-ite on crooked." She answered, laughing again. Sasuke smirked, picturing it, and sat down again, this time next to Hinata on the rock.

"What about Kakashi?" He asked.

"Still asleep." She answered, amusement still clear on her face; her predictions were true and the fact gave her a confidence boost. Along side that reason was also that Naruto was now visible, barreling towards them with crumbs on his face and Hitai-ite still crooked.

"Hey, sorry I'm late! I forgot to set my alarm!" Naruto cried, skidding to a stop in front of them before looking around. "Hey, where's Kakashi-sensei?"

"Still sleeping in his bed." Sasuke answered, sitting next to Hinata again. "You might want to check your face."

"EH?! He's still asleep?! I ran all that way for NOTHING?!" The orange-clad ninja answered.

"Naruto-kun, calm down and wipe your face." Hinata said in her quiet but comanding voice.

"Eh?" One swipe of his arm across his face revealed to Naruto the crumbs that he had missed. "Oh." He blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Tell us, have you never heard of manners, Dobe? Or hygiene?" Sasuke teased. Hinata rumaged through her bag for something to do and pulled out a scroll, ignoring the boys' bickering, then began to read.

It didn't take long for Sasuke to grow bored of the seething blond and he turned to their female companion, only to find her reading a scroll entitled 'Medical Nin Jutsu Volume 5; Fatal Wounds and Blood Loss'. He raised an eyebrow.

"Can I help you with something, Sasuke-kun?" She asked, not looking up from her book.

"You're interested in Medical Nin Jutsu?" He asked.

"Hai."  
"Are you any good at it?"

"I could be better."  
"Are you lying to me?"

"That is for me to know alone." Sasuke watched in bewilderment as Hinata unfruled the scroll further. Was she even listening to him? Or was she just answering with phrases that could fit the topic?_ Might as well test it out... There's nothing else better to do. _

"What's your element?"  
"I would prefer to keep that to myself for the time being, Sasuke-kun. Perhaps you will find out during this test what my element is?"_ Okay, so she knows what I'm saying... _

"Why are you dodging my questions?" He asked bluntly.

"Because there is cause for them to be dodged." Naruto sweatdropped, not understanding a thing she had said.

"Uh... Am I supposed to know what's happening?" He questioned.

"It's fine if you don't understand, Naruto-kun." Hinata answered him.

"Dobe." Sasuke muttered, which resulted in another argument between the two boys. Hinata sighed, returning her full attention to the scroll. Did these two ever stop arguing? _I hope we can pass whatever test this is... _She thought worriedly. Speaking of the test, the female activated her Byakugon and searched for their sleeping sensei.

"Eep!" He was getting dressed, which caused Hinata to gasp and immediately deactivate her bloodline, a crimson stain on her cheeks.

"What?" Naruto asked, trying to understand why her face was so red. "Do you suddenly have a fever? Do you have to lie down? Are you tired? Oh no, Teme! What do we do? Does she need to go to the hospital? Wh--?"

"For the love of god, _shut __**up**_!" Sasuke shouted over the blond's pointless ramblings. When he did finally stop talking, Sasuke turned to Hinata. "What did you see?" Hinata caughed lightly, getting her blush down to a rose color instead of crimson.

"Kakashi-sensei will be here soon." She squeaked with what little dignity she could manage. Sasuke rose an eyebrow.

'What did you see?" He repeated, curious this time. Hinata shook her head, trying to get the blush down still.

"That is for me to know." The Uchiha smirked, figuring it out.

"He was changing, wasn't he." It was a statement, not a question, and Naruto's eyes went wide at that.

"..." She turned her head to the side, blush rising in color again. Naruto burst out laughing, falling to the floor and rolling around. Even the stick-up-my-ass Uchiha cracked a smile and chuckled at the female's expense. "It wasn't my fault..." She muttered, trying to stop the smiles and laughs that were directed at her. "How could I have known?"  
"Well you know now, don't you." Sasuke commented, smirking inwardly at the blush that deepened in color. _That's kinda cute... Wait, what the fuck?! _He shook his head, trying to clear his head of those thoughts. _She's just my teammate, she's just my teammate... Fuck. This isn't good. _

"Sasuke-kun?" Hinata asked, looking slightly worried. Said Uchiha turned his head slightly in a manner similair to what Hinata had done.

"It's nothing." He replied, perhaprs too quickly. Hinata smiled.

"That is perhaps the worst attempt at dodging a question I have ever heard. However, if you don't want to tell me, I won't pry." She said, smile still there and eyes dancing with amusement. Sasuke rolled his own obsidian orbs, trying to shrug off the little voice in his head that was saying she still looked cute. The awkward silence was broken by Kakashi, who poofed into existence behind Hinata's rock.

"Yo! Sorry I'm late. I was helping this old lady cross the street when,"

"You're lying!" Naruto cried, pointing an accusatory finger at the Jounin. "Hinata told us that you just got done changing!" Kakashi raised his visible eyebrow.

"Did she now?" He asked, interested. Sasuke smacked his forehead and Hinata burried her head in her hands, mumbling something that sounded like 'Accident'.

"Dobe." The boy muttered, shaking his head. "She was just checking where he was with the Byakugan and he _happened_ to be changing." Sasuke smirked as he saw Hinata's ears go red at his suggestive sentence. Kakashi chuckled and Hinata spread her fingers apart far enough for her eyes to appear.

"I'm telling you it was an accident..." Came the muffled sentence and the visible skin was still a red that was just a shade lighter than the blood causing the blush.

"Maa, maa, let's move on past Hinata's little sight-seeing adventure." Kakashi commented, though he was smiling as well. "I'm flattered, by the way, Hinata, but I do think I'm a little too old for you." Once again Hinata disappeared behind her hands, trying desperately to not faint from the rush of blood to her head. Naruto was laughing again, same as Sasuke, at the use of the term 'sight-seeing' and the accusation that the kunoichi was interested in their sensei.

"That's not..." She trailed off pitifully, a bit of her previous facade slipping into the truth.

"Anyways, let's get started, shall we?" Kakashi asked with an air of lazy authority that said the topic could be continued after training, but not now. The laughter died and once again Hinata peaked out from behind her hands. The jounin held out his hand, where two bells were dangling from seperate strings. "We'll be having that test now."

"What's the test, sensei?" Naruto asked, tilting his head to the side.

"I was getting to that. You have to steal these bells from me to pass."  
"But there's only two bells." Hinata pointed out, to which the silver-haired man nodded.

"That's because only two of you, if any, will be passing." He said calmly. "I said 66 percent failure chance, didn't I?" The genin looked at eachother, shocked. Hinata's mind was realing. _This doesn't make any sense! Why would he be putting us against eachother? _Her thoughts couldn't continue, however, as Kakashi started talking again. "You have until noon to get these bells, at which time any unsuccessful person will be tied to one of these logs while the rest of us eat lunch in front of them." The threesome pailed._ So that's why he told us not to eat breakfast_... Sasuke thought, feeling his eye twitch in annoyance.

"This is so stupid! You know which people are going to pass, so let's just send Hyuuga back to the academy and have the rest of us continue with a real mission!" Naruto cried. Hinata's eye twitched. _Well that's nice of you to say, Naruto-__**kun**_... She thought bitterly. Kakashi sighed.  
"Actually, Naruto, I think that you of all people should be careful." Naruto glared at the tall jounin, muttering curses under his breath. "You'll have to come at me with an intent ot kill, otherwise you won't be able to get the bell for yourself." Kakashi gave Naruto a pointed look.

"Kuso! I'll show you to under estimate me!" The blond shouted, reaching for a kunai and rushing towards their sensei. In a flash he was behind Naruto with the genin's own blade at his neck.

"Good, an intent to kill. But don't be so hasty; I haven't even said 'start' yet." Kakashi drawled in his bored monotone. "Saa, shall we begin?" Sasuke and Hinata both tensed. "Start!" Suddenly Naruto was the only one still in the clearing as their sensei had disappeared in a puff of smoke, and the other two genin had jumped to hiding spots.  
"Huh?"

Meanwhile, Kakashi was standing in a clearing next to the river not far from where he had left the genin.

"Saa, who will find me first..." He said out loud, well aware that at least one of them was probably already there. What he didn't know was that two of them were there, and the third was bursting through the foliage to land right in front of him.

"Let's go, Kakashi-sensei, you and me, right here and now!" Naruto shouted, standing in a rediculous pose of crossed arms and far spread legs.

"I believe your stealth needs some work, Naruto." _Though that won't be my problem by the end of the day, most likely... _"And perhaps battle strategies."

"Quit your yapping about such useless stuff, because you better be ready!" With that said the blond rushed towards the jounin with an unimpressive speed. Though high for a genin, it wasn't by much, and the first kick sent his way Kakashi merely held up a hand to catch it. Many attempted shots later Naruto backed up, panting.

"There are three main areas that a shinobi specializes in." Kakashi stated. "Skill number on; Tai Jutsu." He reached into his weapons pouch, causing the genin to stop mid dash._ Wait a minute, tai jutsu is hand to hand combat! Why is he reaching for a weapon?! _Naruto thought furiously. With a flick of his wrist the silver-haired jounin pulled out his orange book and flipped it to the marked page, causing Naruto to face plant.

"What the hell, Kakashi-sensei?!" He shouted, jumping to his feet.

"What are you waiting for? Aren't you going to attack me?" The tall man asked. Hinata sighed. _That's a low blow, Sensei_... She thought exasperatedly. _Boys and their ego... _She shook her head, checking to make sure Kakashi was distracted before creeping backwards towards a tall oak tree. Through out the entire slow-moving journey she stayed flat on the ground in the tall grasses, careful to move only when a breeze blew so that the movement of the grass wouldn't alert Kakashi's kean eyes. Finally she reached it, marveling at the world's ways that someone like Naruto could know a technique like Shadow Clones, and when he was in a flur of blocking jumped into the tree's branches without a sound. Hinata sat herself into a position that was easily defendable and gave room for attack on her part before thinking through the excercise. _Kakashi obviously wants us to go against eachother, because he only had two bells on purpose. If there's only two bells to have people pass, then this would turn into a two-man cell with a jounin instructor. Do those exist?_ Hinata shook her head slightly. _No, those aren't made. Combining with other people who passed? That's a possibility. What is the point of this test when they could've only passed those who they knew would become acceptable genin?!_ She thought frustratedly, watching Naruto get caught in a simple academy trap. _Calm down, Hinata. Think. There has to be a logical explanation to all of this_. She activated her byakugon to check on Kakashi's position and found him moving through the woods in the direction of another forest clearing, Sasuke tailing him sloppily in her opinion. Naruto was headed towards the bentou boxes, a stupid grin on his face; the clock near him read 8:00 am. So she had four hours to figure this test out and how to pass it. Hastilly she moved positions to a tree close enough to view Kakashi and Sasuke's battle, but not close enough that a movement would cath their attention. _The test is obviously something meant to try us and see if we can make it through the mental difficulties of the stress. Wait, that's it!_ Hinata's eyes widened. _The stress placed on those that passed was first put into place when they found out, in their moment of bliss, that they had to undergo a huge test that they would most likely fail. The introduction of such disappointment would test the ability to react when something happens in a mission that is disappointing, like failing. They want to know how well the candidates can handle disappointment. That makes sense; if one fails a mission they have to be in at least a right enough mind to make it back alive and report. Okay, so that's why there's a second test after the first; the stress of the situation tests our ability to cope. Could this test be any different? _The Hyuuga's calculating eyes watched as Sasuke almost managed to take a bell from Kakashi's belt, but was pushed back before he could do so._ The stress of this situation is that we're competing with people we have known through out our academy days, with the threat of an extra year of schooling hanging over our heands. We're pitted against our friends, and told that whatever you do, one of you is going back to the academy. That's the part that doesn't make sense. Why are they putting us against eachother? The tests has to be to teach us something that we already know. Obviously, it's a test. What could putting us against eachother and our sensei prove? _Hinata's byakugon activated unconciously in irritation. _It's a survival exersice. What were we taught about survival? That we need to trust in eachother to get through difficult situations. Wait, Teamwork! That's it, this test is to see how well we work as a team even when we're put against eachother! It's to see if we're capable of putting the mission before ourselves and make sacrifices for the better of the team!_ A smile broke out of the girl's face, which was soon replaced by a confident calculating look. _In this case the mission is to get all of us to pass the test, which means getting the bells. The enemies are ourselves, and the gaurd in Kakashi-sensei, who holds the bells. The obstacle to overcome to do this is to find a way to have all three of us pass with only two bells in play. That's easy; if it's a teamwork exercise as well as a survival exercise, then all we have to do is get the bells by working together and we can claim that the bells belong to all of us_. With these things figured out, Hinata waited for Kakashi to leave before jumping to land next to Sasuke's head, which was sticking out of the ground.

"What the-- Where did you come from?!" Sasuke exclaimed when she landed next to him, a determined expression on her face.  
"I've been watching the whole fight, but that's not the point. Sasuke-kun, we have this whole exercise wrong." She knelt down and started to help dig him out with a kunai. "The test isn't about our abilities as a shinobi, but as our ability to do what has to be done."  
"What do you mean?" Hinata explained the rest of her logic while helping dig out the rest of his torso to his shoulders, where she helped him climb out. "I see... What did you have in mind?"  
"First we need to find Naruto-kun. I'll explain in more detail when all of us are here."

They found Naruto being chastised by Kakashi for cheathing, which led to another fight, which led to him standing there on his own when Kakashi used a replacement jutsu. Hinata checked out the area with Byakugon and found Kakashi back in a clearing standing next to a stone, the KIA stone, before moving to the far side of the field and standing with his book. Nodding her assent, Sasuke led the way to Naruto who stood panting in the clearing.

"Wha..? Oh, hey guys!" Naruto said as they walked towards him.

"We've got a plan that will have all of us pass. And we need your help for it." Hinata stated, coming to halt before the hyperactice blond. She quickly explained the plan. "Are you in?" Naruto nodded enthusiastically.

"You bet! Let's show Kakashi-sensei what Team 7 is made of!"

--End Chapter

What do you think? I hope the length is okay, because to me it's a pretty long chapter to write. I like writing Hinata's thoughts, though. That part was fun. Please review.


	3. The Real Test

I'm trying to update faster, but no garuntees as to how fast this one got up.  
Standard Disclaimers apply.

Silence

Chapter 3: The Real Test

Kakashi had, once again, changed clearings after the three genin hadn't come for him in a while. They only had about an hour or two left, and he was positive that this team would be exactly like all the other ones. A team that had no clue what was really important. He sighed and shook his head.  
"Looks like another year of normal missions for me..." He muttered to himself, taking out his book again. The jounin had, of course, already finished it, but that didn't mean he wouldn't want to read it again. And what better time than now?

Just as it was getting to the good part something off to the side rustled, putting him instantly on alert. _Looks like they found me... I wonder which one it is this time. I haven't had a good fight with Hinata yet, maybe it's her and she's been watching the others for battle techniques. _

"Your face is an open book, Kakashi-sensei." Came a femenine voice from his right. The adult followed the noise and saw Hinata sitting in a tree to his right, twirling a kunai in her hands. She jumped down. "And yes, I have been watching the other fights. Sasuke-kun almost had you, didn't he?"

"Will you be a challenge for me, then, Hinata?" He asked, turning a page. The teen laughed.

"Kakashi-sensei, I could kill you right now if I wanted to." She threw the kunai into the air and caught it when it came down. "But why would I want to do that? You haven't done anything to insult me, nor have you hurt someone I care about. Asking for an intent to kill on a whim like this test is asking a little much of genin, isn't it? Of course, if you're someone who only became a ninja to kick everyone's ass, then I guess the test isn't asking of much in that area. But that's not what this is about, is it, Sensei?" Came the question, which was more of a statement.

"What do you think it's about then, Hinata?" Kakashi asked in his bored monotone.

"Simple." Suddenly two smoke bombs went off to either side of the genin, resulting in a purple mist hanging over the entire clearing.

"Oh? What do you have up your sleeve?" The jounin muttered, closing his book with a snap.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Six Narutos came out of the mist, surprising Kakashi.

"Nani?!" Three came from each side, all aiming at different parts of his body. The jounin had no choice but to jump up to avoid, meaning coming out of the mist.  
"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" The tall man's eyes snapped to his right where Sasuke was crouched on a tree branch about five feet above the mist. A stream of flames flew out of his mouth at the jounin.

"Shit!" The flames engulfed the jounin, but it wasn't the man himself, only a log that fell into the mist again. Shuriken shot at Sasuke from the mist to his left, and he had no choice but to dodge and go deeper into the foliage.

"Futon: Wind Slice no Jutsu!" A strong wind blew through the clearing, blowing away the mist. It cleared to give Kakashi a few seconds to see a huge black panther headed towards him, with a dagger sticking out the side of his mouth. The jounin flipped into the air as the giant cat went underneath him. There was a flash of orange and the jutsu was dispelled, leaving Kakashi falling to the ground in a crouched position to find his team standing in front of him, a triumphant blond holding a bell in his hand, connected to cut string, while Sasuke also held one to the other side of Hinata.. Kakashi's eyes widened and he reached down to his belt, finding only a cut string._ So that jutsu was to cut the string, not me... These kids really are something_.

"This test is about teamwork, Kakashi-sensei." Hinata stated, offering a hand to her sensei. He took it and he was pulled to his feet.

"Okay then, you got the bells by working together. Now comes the hard part. Who gets singled out?" The silver-haired man asked.  
"That's simple as well. We all got the bells, because we all worked together to get them. They belong to all of us now, so we share them. None of us fail." The kunoichi once again answered for her team. Kakashi blinked in surprise.  
"Okay then. You figured out this test. I'm impressed. Why don't we go eat?" The group walked back to the clearing where Kakashi handed out the bentou boxes and all began eating. "So I'm curious... Who figured out the test?"  
"Hinata." Sasuke answered.  
"How?"  
"It was really simple when you analyzed the situation, Sensei." She started, placing her chopsticks down in her rice. "There were only a few reasons that you would put us against eachother. One; you wanted to see which of us was the strongest and if any of us were not worthy of passing the test. Two; you wanted to see our individual skills and there for put us against each other so that we would have to use all of our own techniques to try and defeat you. Three; you wanted to see if we could look beyond what our orders were to see the true meaning of the mission. It was the third that you wanted with this test. All I had to do was look closely at the test and see what you were trying to have us do. You wanted to cause distrust among us. Then again, this didn't really help me figure out what the test was." She admitted sheepishly. "The thing that gave away the test to me is that it's a survival test. You said so yesterday when we first heard about it. Not to our faces, but I heard you say it to Kurenai-sensei when you two were talking about what you were going to test your teams on."

_Flashback_

_"So what are you going to test your team on?" Kurenai asked Kakashi, who was walking next to her. _

_"I'm doing the usual survival test." He answered. The female jounin shook her head. _

_"They're never going to pass that test, Kakashi. Why not try a different way of approaching the topic now and then?" _

_"Because that would be too easy and no fun." Came her answer. "Plus, what other type of test would give me time to read my precious books?" He added. The crimson-eyed woman sighed.  
"They're kids. You should at least give them a chance."  
"Yeah, yeah... So what are you doing with your team?" Kakashi asked. _

_"Well, I was going to..." A woman dressed in a simple kimono that had been walking the same way as them turned off the street and into a rarely used side-street. It was deserted save a few people passing through.  
"Kai." She muttered, and with a flash of smoke Hinata stood there. "That was pretty helpful. I guess information gathering was a good idea after all."  
_

_End Flashback_

"Wait, you went information gathering just because I told you that I was giving you a test?" Kakashi asked.

"A test that could determine if I was going back to the academy or not. Yes, I did." Hinata answered, blushing lightly at everyone's surprised stares. _How could I not sense that it was her? I thought that woman was a normal civilian, I couldn't sense powerful chakra at all! _As if sensing her Sensei's astonishment, she continued. "I've always been better at spying than anything else. I usually use that to my advantage. Anyways, the one thing we were taught about survival excercises is that you need to rely on your resources, or in this case, allies. Teamwork." Kakashi nodded. "After that it was just coming up with a battle strategy."

"Well, I'm impressed." The tall man said, standing up. "Meet me here tomorrow at 8:00 am for our first real mission." Naruto whooped in joy, jumping up and down.

"Oh yeah! A mission! A real mission!" He cried, doing his infamous victory dance without shame. Sasuke shook his head while Hinata stifled a laugh behind her hand at the blond's antics.

"Hai, hai. Don't be late." The Jounin drawled, smiling at them. _Wait until everyone else finds out that I actually passed a team... I'll never hear the end of it_. "Ja." With a puff of smoke Kakashi was gone, leaving the gennin to continue on with their day.

"Naruto-kun, are you ever going to stop?" Hinata asked between giggles while her loud teammate continued to celebrate.

"Not anytime soon, Hinata-chan!" The blonde replied happily. Sasuke leaned back against one of the poles, smirking at the orange-wearing teen.

"So, it's Hinata-_chan_ now, huh?" He commented, to which Naruto just nodded energetically.

"Yep! 'Cuz now that we're teammates, we're going to be friends! Right, Hinata-chan?" He turned to the dark-haired female expectantly.

"Sure, Naruto-kun." She answered, watching bemusedly as her blonde newly-aqquired friend as he started jumping around again. While he was running around, the kunoichi turned to her other teammate. "I guess that means we'll have to be friends as well, huh?" She asked, and the Uchiha smirked slightly.

"I guess so." They watched Naruto run around the clearing in his excitement for a few minutes before the raven spoke again. "You never showed us what your element is, other than using a wind-based jutsu. I don't think that's your element, though, at least not your primary one." Hinata smiled.

"No, wind is not my primary element, you're right there. It is my secondary element. I'll let you figure out what my primary one is on your own." She said in response. Sasuke's smirk grew just a little bit.

"I'll figure it out, that's for sure." Naruto came back over to the group then, looking slightly confused, but still happy.

"What do you mean, primary and secondary elements?" He asked, plopping down in between the two on the grass.

"Baka..." Sasuke muttered.  
"Sasuke-kun, we just agreed that we would try to all be friends." She admonished before looking down slightly so that she could look Naruto in the eyes. "There are five basic elements; Lightning, Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth. These different elements can be used in different jutsu. With me so far?" Naruto nodded. "Most shinobi have what's called an affinity to one or more of these elements. The one you're best at is called your primary element, because you tend to use it before your others. It's possible to learn how to use the elements that you don't specialize in, but it's harder. Still, even then people tend to use their affinities more often. It's like choosing your favorite color over other colors." Naruto nodded slowly.

"I think I get it. So, every person is better at a certain element? And that's their primary element?"

"Basically. Some people don't have an affinity at all, but that's not that common."

"Cool. So do I have an affinity?" The blonde asked.

"Probably. I can bring you some chakra paper tomorrow, if you like." Hinata smiled as Naruto's eyes got wider.

"What's chakra paper?"  
"It tells you what your element is." Sasuke answered. The orange-wearing shinobi's eyes got even wider at that.

"Really? You'll bring me some?!" Hinata nodded, smiling. "Yatta! Thanks, Hinata-chan!"  
"No problem, Naruto-kun."

End of Chapter--

Hey, sorry that it took so long again. But at least it's up, right? Reviews are wonderful. Oh, and there's a poll on my profile that I need some results on, if you have the time. Thanks! Ja!

~Nina


	4. Enter Lily

Hey, here's the next chapter of Silence. I'm sorry about how irregular my updates are, but I'm a busy teen. Work with me here; I'm trying.

Disclaimer; the only things I own are the plot line and any OCs I could possibly add in the future.

Silence

Chapter 4: Enter Lily

Hinata walked through the streets towards a small shop. It was on the far side of Konoha from the Hyuuga compound, but the heiress didn't mind. Most things were, and a little walk never hurt anyone. Besides, it gave her some time to think over her most recent challenge; the test. It actually went better than she had thought that it would. At first, the seemingly illogical patterns of the test had irritated her. This was her first serious mistake. Things that happen on missions aren't always logical, after all. As a gennin she would have to learn to expect the unexpected, which irked her a bit. Before the test she might have considered that one of her best skills, besides her seemingly uncanny ability to spy and gather information. Now it was obvious how much work even that, one or her best skills, needed to get closer to her goal.

Hinata's goal was to be the first female head of the ANBU. It was her dream, actually. Her mother had been an ANBU, before she settled down with Hiashi, and almost managed to become head. She was deffinately on one of the best teams in the organization. Unfortunately, the elders of that time hadn't wanted a simple Hyuuga to have the same level of influence as they did over the Hokage. And a female, at that. It was disgraceful, according to them.

So, Hinata was going to prove to the elders that a woman would make just as good a Captain as any man. For her mother's sake, as well as for kunoichi everywhere. Besides, a woman was much more valuable in some situations. You don't see men getting sent on too many seduction missions, after all. That required a more... femenine touch. Plus, women aren't as suspicious to people. No one outside of the bigger ninja nations really thought much on the fact that women were ninja as well. And, as much as Hinata loathed it, more powerful ninja with bigger egos tended to be sexist and thought that they could take on any female. That was another thing Hinata intended to change.

After another few minutes of walking, the young heiress arrived at her destination. It was a small shop, with an aged-looking sign out front that read 'Lily's Supplies'. The store mainly sold kunoichi equipment, but also carried the general ninja gear. It also sold chakra paper, which was what Hinata needed at the moment. Smiling a bit, she walked inside.

At the ringing of the bell on the door, a middle-aged woman looked up from the counter where she had been arranging various undercover weapons. Her hair was silvery, and fell to her waist. The front was pulled back and held by a clip which Hinata knew carried a poison that could be sprayed on somone by a small button disguised as an earring. Her clothes were neither too fancy or too plain, and held a subtle air of elegance. The woman smiled at seeing who it was.

"Hello, Hinata-chan. I haven't seen you in a while." She said, turning from her merchandise and coming around the counter. The young heiress gladly accepted the hug that the older woman pulled her into, returning it gently. "Goodness, Child," She stated as she pulled back. "did you just come back from training? You seem very weary for just a little stroll to my humble shop." Hinata laughed.

"Yes, I did just come from training, in a sense, Lily. I had my final gennin test today; our jounin instructor is a very agile person, and I'm afraid that I had troubles keeping up with him on my own." The woman, Lily, laughed as well.

"You'll have to tell me all about this test, then, while I find that new product that just came in. I think you'll like it." The blue-eyed woman moved back towards the counter and slipped behind, while Hinata leaned against it.

"Do you mind grabbing some chakra paper while you're at it, Lily? One of my teammates wants to know his element." She called after the woman.

"'Course not, Child. Now, tell me all about your new teammates and this test that you took." So Hinata relayed what had happened to the older woman that was her stand-in mother in so many ways. When she came to describing her teammates, though, she faltered a little.

"Well, they're almost complete opposites. There's the loud obnoxious one, Uzumaki Naruto. He can be quite annoying, and a bit dense, but his intentions are good. Most of the time. Over all he's a decent guy. And then there's Uchiha Sasuke, the silent brooding one, I guess you could say. He can be really arrogant, but in the end, I guess he means well in his actions. He just doesn't necessarily know how to show it. I mean, how can you blame him, after what happened to his clan? They're just so... different! Do you know what I mean?" Lily came out of the back room, nodding.

"Most teams are like that, even my old team was. I think the Hokage does that on purpose to balance the teams." Hinata nodded thoughtfully.  
"I suppose that makes sense. So, what's come in since the last time I visited?" The teen asked. Lily's icy eyes sparkled as she laid out what looked to be a hairpin on the table, similar to what was in her own hair, but smaller. It took the shape of a sapphire butterfly, with tiny pearls along the edge of the upper wings. There were also matching sapphire earrings, with tiny pearls hanging down from them.

"Do you remember how excited you were when I showed you what my clip could do?" Lily asked, gessturing to the larger amethyst butterfly in her own hair. Hinata nodded. "And how disappointed you were that it only worked for people with long hair?" Again, the heiress nodded. "Well, I've been working in my little lab, and this is the result. Hold still." The teen did as she was told, and the older woman arranged the heavy-looking pin into her hair. Surprisingly, the clip seemed almost weightless; the same went for the small earrings. "This clip is of the same design as mine. It does everything that mine does; all you have to do is pull on the string of pearls lightly on your right ear. This is connected to an almost invisible wire that leads to the small vile of poison on the back of the clip; my own mixture." Lily admitted proudly. It knocks out the other person almost on contact, and burns the lungs. Very similar to mustard bombs, only instead of only removing the sense of smell, it robs one of the ability to speak for several hours after waking."

"Wow..." Hinata breathed, looking at her reflection in the small mirror that Lily held up for her. The clip seemed neither too large or too expensive for any gathering of high class officials. Of course, it would catch a few eyes, but that was what jewelry was meant to do. It would be perfect for an undercover mission, when one came up. "This is perfect, Lily! It's beautiful!" The woman nodded in approval of the praise.

"The poison will spray from the pearls on the wings; don't worry, they're real. I drilled them. Even if the person you were undercover for was a jewler, he wouldn't suspect. The holes don't open until you pull on the string; the entire transaction takes less than a second, so it's wonderful for tight situations. Just one tiny pull, and the person gets sprayed. Oh, just remember that you'll have to turn your head slightly because of the position of the clip." Hinata grinned at the older woman, and hugged her from across the counter.

"It's perfect! How much do I owe you?" Lily laughed and backed up, holding her hands up in an 'I surrender' gessture. The older woman grinned as well.

"Not a single penny. It's not every day that my little flower becomes a full-fledged gennin. It's a gift; one that I've been waiting to give you for several weeks now." If possible, Hinata's smile grew.

"Are you sure?"  
"Absolutely. Just promise me that on your first undercover mission, you'll use it, if you can." Hinata hugged the woman again.

"I promise. Thank you."

End of Chapter---

Hey, at least this is up faster than the last one, even if it's shorter than usual. I think. To tell you the truth, I didn't count. ^^; Review? Please?


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